Clay loader and scraper.



W. A. MOHRBAGH. CLAY LOADER AND SCRAPER.

APPLICATION FILED APR. 16', 1910.

Patented Nov. 8, 191,6.

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WITNESSES: /wf L.

ATTORNEY.

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W. A. MOHRBAGH.

CLAY LOADER AND SORAPER.

APPLICATION FILED APR. 18, 1910.

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,W'. A. MDHRBAGH.

CLAY LOADER AND SCRAPER'. APPLICATION FILED APRJB, 1910.

Patented Nov. 8, 1910.

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. WITNESSES:

INVENTOR.

A W A Y B 0., WASHINGTON, D, c,

tion, reference being had to the accompany-.

r are WILLIAM A. MOI-IRBAGH, OF ST. LOUIS, MISSOURI.

CLAY LOADER AND SCRAPER.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Nov. 8, 1910.

Application filed April 18, 1910. Serial No. 556,233.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, VVILLTAM A. Morni- BACI-I, citizen of the United States, residing at St. Louis, State ef Missouri, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Clay Loaders and Scrapers, of which the following is a full, clear, and exact descriping drawings, forming a part hereof.

My invention has relation to improvements in clay-loaders and scrapers; and it consists in the novel details of construction more fully set forth in the specification and pointed out in the claims.

In the drawings, Figure 1 is a top plan of the machine, with one-half of the hood removed, and parts broken away; Fig. 2 is a side elevation of the machine, with one wheel of the front and rear trucks removed, and parts broken; Fig. 3 is a front elevation of the machine, parts broken away, and with chute-extensions attached; Fig. 4 is a side elevation of the machine in its folded or collapsed position, the approximate slack assumed by the conveyer and drive-chains being indicated by dotted lines; Fig. 5 is a rear view of the scraper detached; Fig. 6 is a detached side elevation of the post sup porting the front of the collapsible conveyer-supporting tower; and Fig. 7 is a view at right angles to Fig. 6, that is, viewed from the front.

The object of my invention is to construct a clay scraping and loading machine in which the material is elevated to a suitable height from which it is automatically dumped into a chute which conveys the material to a wagon traveling with the machine.

A further object is to provide a driving mechanism for the bucket conveyer which shall be independent of the means for propelling the machine along the ground, whereby a comparatively light frame and superstructure is possible, thus reducing the weight of the machine as a whole.

A further object is to provide means for directing the material discharged from the buckets either to the right or left of the machine, so that a wagon on either side of the machine may receive the dirt. In this way the capacity of the loader is increased to a maximum as the operator is not obliged to wait until a wagon filled with dirt has departed to make room for an empty wagon to be filled.

A further object is to provide means for revolve about it.

folding or collapsing the superstructure or the tower carrying the bucket-conveyer, whereby the entire machine may be folded to within a small compass when not in service.

The invention presents further and other advantages better apparent from a detailed description thereof, which is as follows Referring to the drawings, B represents the body of the wagon or vehicle on which my loader is mounted, the same being provided with a front swiveled wheeled truck the rear wheels IV being loosely carried at the ends of a shaft S which is mounted in bearings a at the bottom of the wagon. The shaft S is rotatable in its bearings independently of the wheels W which are free to At the rear end of the wagon is hinged a depending apron or scraper 1 having a sharp cutting edge, the body of the scraper being concaved on the inside, and provided with stiffening ribs 2 on the outside, the free cutting edge of the scraper extending somewhat beyond the bottoms of the ribs. The scraper may be adjusted to any angle, this being accomplished by means of adjusting nuts or at the free screw-threaded ends of the tie-rods 3 secured to the body B, each rod being provided with a lock-nut 1?. bearing against the inner face of the scraper so that the latter when once adjusted may be locked in position against movement. To accord the rods 3 free play in the openings 0 of the scraper through which they pass, for any oscillation of the latter for purposes of adjustment, the said openings are made large enough to allow forthe arcuate movement of the scraper in making such adjustment; besides, the rods themselves will yield slightly to allow for any oscillation to which the scraper may be subjected.

Mounted on top of the wagon body B is a steam engine E to which steam is supplied through a pipe 72 coupled to a pipe 7) leading from the boiler of any suitable traction engine (not shown) by which the wagon is drawn over the surface to be scraped, the pole 4 of the wagon being coupled to such traction-engine by any suitable form of coupling 5. The engine E operates a crank shaft 6 disposed across the top of the wagon, said shaft being provided with a fly-wheel 7 (the body B being cut away sufiiciently to accommodate it), and being further provided with terminal sprocket-pinions 8, 8,

from which lead sprocket-chains 9, 9, to the terminal sprocket wheels 10, 10 on the overhead shaft 11 mounted on top of the standard or conveyer-supporting tower to'be now more particularly described.

The bucket-supporting tower iscomposed of the rear rigid posts or uprights 12, 12, built permanently to the wagon-body B, each upright being provided with an upper hinged extension 12, 12. To the free ends of the extensions 12, 12, are secured the top cross-pieces 13, 13, from which in turn depend the arms 14:, 14, which are parallel to the extensions 12, 12. For the extended or unfolded position of the tower, the lower ends of the arms 14c, 14:, rest on the posts 15, 15, which are detachably secured at the bottom to the wagon body by means of detachable pins or bolts 17 inserted through plates 18 carried by the body B, the lower ends of the members 14 carrying face plates 19 through which detachable pins or bolts 17 are inserted into the upper ends of the posts 15, 15, thus completing the connection. The

bolts 17 serve to connect the braces 20, the lower ends of which are coupled to the sides of the wagon-body by bolts 17 The upper end of the tower carries a hood or casing 11 as shown, said hood having a front overhanging portion H from which laterally diverge in opposite directions (to the right and left), the discharge chutes 21, 21. At the ridge formed by the diverging bottoms of the chutes 21, is centrally hinged a wing or leaf P, each arm of said leaf having an eye-bolt 22 to which a cord or wire r is at' tached, said wire passing loosely through the hood bottom and terminating in a ring 23 by which it may be manipulated, said ring being within easy reach of the operator, whereby the wing or leaf may be tilted first to one direction and then the other according on which side of the machine the dirt is to be discharged. When fully tilted one arm of the wing P rests on the bottom of the particular chute to which the dirt discharged from the conveyer shall be delivered (Fig. 3) the opposite arm extending upward into the' hood-extension H. To each chute 21 may be temporarily secured by a latch and staple connection m, an extension 21 dis charging directly into the dirt wagon (or equivalent receptacle) D running alongside the loader, the extension 21 being braced by a brace or strut 24 hinged at its lower end to the machine, the upper end passing through a Staple t on the extension.

Disposed on, and secured to, the rear truck-shaft S are a pair of sprocket-wheels 25, from which lead the sprocket chains 26 to a corresponding pair of sprocket wheels 25 on the shaft 11, the links of the chains carrying the scoops or buckets 27 collectively forming an endless conveyer, the buckets being preferably secured between opposite pair of links of the respective chains by means of cross-bars or plates 28 secured between the links. Any form of bucket-conveyer however, will answer the purpose of the present invention.

The operation of the loader is as follows :As the machine is drawn along the ground by the traction engine, the scraper 1 (set to the proper angle according to the character and tenacity of clay to be worked) digs up the earth or clay, and with the engine E driven to impart the proper direction of travel to the bucket conveyer, the individual buckets scoop up the dirt and convey it to the top of the tower, where each bucket discharges its contents onto the leaf P, the dirt discharging through the right or left hand'chute 21, 21, into the wagon D accompanying the loader, the direction of discharge depending on which side of the machine a dirt wagon D is available. Or, where the loader has been discharging into a wagon on one side, the operator without waiting for the wagon thus loaded to proceed, may in a moment swing the leaf or wing P to the opposite direction by seizing and drawing on the rope r on that side, and thus instantly and without loss of time direct the dirt into a wagon in readiness to receive it on the opposite side of the machine. This saving in time for directing the dirt into wagons on opposite sides of the machine increases the loading efficiency of the apparatus. hen the machine is not in use, the chute extensions 21 may be uncoupled, the braces 20 and posts 15 may be removed, and the hinged extension of the tower may be folded forward about the hinges it down against the wagon-body B, thus taking up a minimum amount of room when not in service (Fig. 4). This feature is likewise an important one in the present invention. Again, the driving gear for the conveyer being independent of the rear wheels l/V (the said wheels being loose on the shaft S), any desired velocity may be imparted to the bucket-conveyer irrespective of the speed at which the loader is drawn over the ground. Obviously, the present machine is not confined to operating on clay, but may be used for loading any kind of dirt whatsoever. In its folded position the lowered hinged extension of the conveyer-tower may rest on blocks 1) so as to keep the dead weight off the driving mechanism coupled to the engine (Fig. 4;).

Having described my invention, what I claim is V 1. In combination with a wagon-body, a conveyer-supporting tower comprising a lower rear fixed section and a hinged extension coupled thereto and capableof oscillation in a fixed plane, chutes carried at the front of the hinged extension and diverging laterally and at right angles to the plane of between the oscillation of the extension, the hinge axis being positioned at a point to allow the chutes to be folded close to the Wagon-body, and means for supporting the extension in operative position.

2. In combination with a wagon body having a front wheeled truck, a rear shaft provided with bearing wheels for the wagon, said wheels being loose 011 said shaft, a vertical forwardly folding tower on the wagon body mounted over the rear shaft, sprocket wheels on the shaft aforesaid, an upper shaft on the tower, sprocket wheels on the towershaft, an endless bucket conveyer stretched sprocket wheels of the respective shafts, intermediate gearing between the shafts, an engine on the wagon-body in front of the tower for actuating the wagonshaft and the conveyor, and means on the top of the tower for conveying away the dirt discharged from the buckets of the conveyer.

3. In combination with a wagon-body, a conveyer-supporting tower comprising a lower rear fixed section, a hinged extension coupled thereto, a front parallel portion forming a part of said hinged extension, and removable front posts for temporarily supporting the hinged extension, the latter being adapted to be folded forward against the Wagon body upon a removal of the posts aforesaid.

In testimony whereof I aflix my signature, in presence of two witnesses.

IVILLIAM A. MOHRBACH.

l/Vitnesses EMIL STAREK, FANNIE E. WEBER. 

